M.O.L.E., indie analog horror survival, drilling into the earth, Navigator, claustrophobia, Off Black Creations, wishlist, Steam

M.O.L.E. (2026): The Claustrophobic Cold War Horror Game Right Under Your Feet

ByMusu Murray

Just when you thought indie horror was tapped out, along comes a game that wants you to drill to the center of the Earth in a Soviet-era rust bucket. Meet M.O.L.E., a PSX-style simulator-horror game that looks like it was ripped straight from a dusty VHS tape found in your grandpa’s paranoid Cold War-era trunk.

M.O.L.E. (2026)

M.O.L.E., indie analog horror survival, drilling into the earth, Navigator, claustrophobia, Off Black Creations, control panels, main objective
Image of M.O.L.E., Courtesy of Off Black Creations via Steam

M.O.L.E. is an upcoming indie made by Off Black Creations that puts you at the helm of a Soviet drilling machine during the final days of the Cold War. It’s a first-person psychological horror experience that blends the tactile, button-pushing satisfaction of a simulator with the creeping dread of a classic horror game.

In M.O.L.E., the graphics are gritty, analog, and overdue for a safety inspection. The developers are leaning heavily into a PSX-style aesthetic, but blend in modern lighting and rendering to create a world that feels hauntingly familiar and disturbingly alive. So don’t let the looks shelf it’s another analog-style horror because you’re in for a heck of a ride (or dive since you’re drilling) that’s gonna leave you feeling breathless.

Digging Down With The MC

M.O.L.E., indie analog horror survival, drilling into the earth, Navigator, claustrophobia, Off Black Creations, creature, entity, stalking
Image of M.O.L.E., Courtesy of Off Black Creations via Steam

The premise is simple, yet deliciously unsettling. You play as the Navigator who’s tasked to guide a colossal drilling vehicle and drill into the Earth’s crust to find [REDACTED]. Unfortunately, your mission goes severely awry when voices start calling from deep below, your crew mysteriously vanishes, and you’re left alone in a machine that seems to have a mind of its own. You need to turn dials, flip switches, and hit the keyboards to keep your drill running and your sanity in line.

As you descend, fragments of your past begin to claw to the surface and start to blur the lines between memory, reality, and the cryptic “Signal” that beckons you deeper. It’s about the suffocating claustrophobia, the unnerving silence broken only by the groaning of the vessel’s hull, and the chilling realization that you might not be alone.

Final Thoughts: Metal Coffin Sinking Into A Nightmare

M.O.L.E. has the body and attitude to stand out as the next top-tier horror survival indie game, right next to Iron Lung and The Backrooms. Off Black Creations is coming in hot with this Cold-War era game with an unsettling atmosphere and an unknown entity wandering your vessel. If you’re ready to spiral into madness at the bottom of the Earth, keep your eyes on this one. It’s planned for a Q1 2026 release, so you’ve got plenty of time to mentally prepare for your descent.

Musu Murray is a graduate of Winthrop University with a B.S. in Multidisciplinary Chemistry & B.A. in Illustration Visual Communication. She can understand the technical jargon but prefers writing easy-to-digest reports that get straight to the point. She is a massive horror fan and loves the arts. When she's not writing, you can find her either at her easel desk painting, or bundled up in the dark watching cult classics. From gaming to gardening, she will get her hands on whatever topic she finds.

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